In-line Skaters To Get Indoor Rink

Warriors ranging in age from 8 to 10 don helmets, knee and elbow pads, and carry curved wooden sticks to try to prevent the other from invading the crease.

Opposing eyes glare at the rubber ball that rests in the center of the makeshift rink. The in-line skates that the players wear screech against the concrete.

This could be a scene from a parking lot on a Saturday morning. But, in Broward County, many who play roller hockey may soon get a chance to play their sport in an indoor facility.

Last week, the City Commission approved plans for the first in-line hockey center in Broward.

And support for the facility has been overwhelming.

"We've been greeted with open arms by government and local neighborhood associations," said Brian Cohen, president of the Broward In-Line Hockey Center.

But the road to approval has been long and seemingly unending. It was July 12 of last year when Cohen's application was first filed with their attorney, Barbara Hall.

The site, which lies along State Road 84 between Interstate 95 and Southwest 18th Terrace, went through several processes of approval.

First, the site itself was not designated to hold the proposed in-line center.

"The land use had to be changed to commercial from multi-family residential," said Hall.

Noise, traffic and light studies were conducted in an effort to measure the effect the rink would have on neighboring communities.

The approval process has taken more than a year, and Cohen projects that building should begin in five to eight months.

The hockey center will have a 66,000-square-foot indoor arena and a 37,000-square-foot outdoor practice rink. Both rinks will be regulation size, enough to hold in-line skaters and roller hockey players.

The arena also will have a video gameroom and a pro shop.

But the most important feature of the in-line center could be the facility itself.

"They're either on beach tearing up the wall or on outdoor rinks not suited for the sport," said city planner Chris Barton. "This gives (skaters) a structured place to play."

Barton believes this venture would yield positive dividends for the area. The center also will employ 40 people.

"It will help the image of (State Road 84)," said Barton. "Forty new jobs, that never hurts."

The in-line center is only the start of what Cohen plans to do in South Florida. There are plans to build another in-line center in Coral Springs. Cohen envisions even more down the road.

"I can see about eight to 10 centers in the distant future," said Cohen.

This is good news to 10-year-old Keegan Uhler of Fort Lauderdale, who practices outside with friends in a cul-de-sac near his home.

"It gets hot when we play," said Uhler, who's been playing since he was 6. "We sweat like swimming pools when we play."